Appeals Court Rejects Bid to Reinstate Travel Ban

Early this morning, a federal appeals court denied an emergency appeal by the U.S. government to immediately reinstate President Donald Trump’s executive order barring citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries from travelling to the United States.

If you’ve lost track, that means that for the time being, travel operations to the United States, which resumed “as normal” yesterday, will continue to operate without observing new restrictions set forth by President Donald Trump in late January.

But in a country that’s re-defining normal on a daily basis, it’s hard to know what exactly this kind of normal means. If you’re new to this story or have just lost track of the thread, here’s a current breakdown:

Yesterday, the State Department reversed a ban on travel visas, suspending “any and all actions” related to an executive order issued by President Trump, restricting all travel for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries. After the State department reversed its position, airlines around have resumed boarding all passengers holding valid visas.

As a result, there have been numerous reports that affected traveler around the world are rushing to board flights to the United States this weekend before the United States has another chance to flip-flop on its travel regulations.

And while air travel to the U.S. may be operating without restrictions, plenty of questions remain.

In Canada, the CBC is reporting that all affected citizens, on both sides of the border, holding NEXUS membership cards have had their memberships revoked. NEXUS is a trusted traveler program administered through Customs and Border Protection that offers pre-screened travelers expedited access between the United States and Canada. Although NEXUS is mostly used at U.S./Canada border crossings, members are also permitted to use Global Entry kiosks when entering the U.S. from Canadian Preclearance airports.

Although letters notifying members of the cancellation were sent out before the State Department reversed its position, there has been no word as to whether affected NEXUS members will have their membership automatically reinstated, or whether they will need to re-apply for membership.

The question looms larger for Canadians than Americans, as it is likely that most affected citizens living in the U.S. will refrain from leaving the U.S. in the immediate future, for fear that rules could change again, stranding them in Canada or even abroad.

Because, while the appeals court rejected the emergency order to reinstate the travel ban, it did not reject the ban itself. Which means travel to America for affected citizens could be snarled in litigation for the foreseeable future

The next steps are up to the lawyers for Washington and Minnesota states, where federal judges have ruled the travel ban unconstitutional. Lawyers for the two states have until 2:59 a.m. (EST) on Monday to file papers needed to have their decisions upheld. The U.S. Justice Department will then have until 6 p.m. (EST) to file a response. After that, a panel will determine whether to make a ruling or hold a hearing.

James Robart, the federal judge from Washington state who first ruled that the travel ban was unconstitutional, said the ruling negatively affects "residents in areas of employment, education, business, family relations, and freedom to travel."

The Justice Department’s filing argues “"Courts are particularly ill-equipped to second-guess the President's prospective judgment about future risks. Unlike the President, courts do not have access to classified information about the threat posed by terrorist organizations operating in particular nations, the efforts of those organizations to infiltrate the United States, or gaps in the vetting process.”

And as federal judges get ready to do battle with the U.S. Justice Department, please fasten your seatbelts. We’re getting ready for some turbulent skies ahead.

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